ozone

ozone

[o´zōn]

a bluish explosive gas or blue liquid, being an allotropic form of oxygen, O3; it is antiseptic and disinfectant, and irritating and toxic to the pulmonary system. Ozone that is carried in the air is odorless and colorless.

Ozone is artificially produced when automobile exhaust fumes combine with nitrogen oxide in the presence of sunlight and high temperatures. This leads to ozone pollution. Federal standards have been established to determine when the level of ozone in atmospheric air is unhealthful.

ozone alert a warning issued by health and environmental officials during periods of excessive ozone pollution for those individuals most sensitive to ozone, such as the very young, the elderly, and ill individuals, especially those with respiratory conditions. Advice is to remain indoors and limit physical activity. Healthy individuals are also advised to limit outdoor activity.

o·zone

(ō'zōn),

O3; a powerful oxidizing agent; air containing a perceptible amount of O3 formed by an electric discharge or by the slow combustion of phosphorus, and has an odor suggestive of Cl2 or SO2; also formed by the action of solar UV radiation on atmospheric O2.

[G. ozō, to smell]

ozone

(o´zōn) a bluish explosive gas or blue liquid, being an allotropic form of oxygen, O3; it is antiseptic and disinfectant, and irritating and toxic to the pulmonary system.

ozone

(ō′zōn′)

n.

1. An unstable, poisonous allotrope of oxygen, O3, that is formed naturally in the ozone layer from atmospheric oxygen by electric discharge or exposure to ultraviolet radiation, also produced in the lower atmosphere by the photochemical reaction of certain pollutants. It is a highly reactive oxidizing agent used to deodorize air, purify water, and treat industrial wastes.

2. Informal Fresh, pure air.

o·zo′nic(ō-zō′nĭk, ō-zŏn′ĭk), o′zon′ous(ō′zō′nəs) adj.

ozone (O3)

Etymology: Gk, ozein, to have an odor

an allotropic form of oxygen consisting of molecules containing three oxygen atoms. Ozone is formed when oxygen is present in an electric discharge, as might occur in a lightning storm. Ozone is used as a bleaching, cleaning, and oxidizing agent and has a faint, chlorinelike odor.

Ozone is the most widespread form of air pollution. When inhaled, ozone irritates the lungs, resulting in something like a bad sunburn. The health effects of breathing ozone pollution can be immediate and include wheezing, coughing and asthma attacks

o·zone

(ō'zōn)

A powerful oxidizing agent; air containing a perceptible amount of O3 formed by an electric discharge or by the slow combustion of phosphorus; also formed by the action of solar UV radiation on atmospheric O2.

[G. ozō, to smell]

ozone

A gas consisting of molecules in which three atoms of oxygen are linked together. Concentrated ozone is a blue explosive liquid. Even in low concentrations the gas is poisonous and highly irritating. The ozone layer in the stratosphere, between 10 and 50 km above the earth's surface, is produced continuously by the action of ultraviolet radiation from the sun and forms a protective barrier, cutting down the intensity of the ultraviolet component in sunlight. Without the ozone layer we would suffer serious biological effects from solar radiation, including a large increase in the incidence of skin cancer. Atmospheric ozone is broken down by the catalytic action of chloro-fluoro-carbons (CFCs) and other substances. Recent studies have shown that ozone is involved in the oxidative stress production of ATHEROSCLEROSIS in arteries. Cholesterol is converted by ozone to 5,6-secosterol which is cytotoxic and induces the formation of foam cells in the presence of low-density lipoproteins.

Ozone

A form of oxygen with three atoms in its molecule (O3), produced by an electric spark or ultraviolet light passing through air or oxygen. Ozone is used therapeutically as a disinfectant and oxidative agent.

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